The Stolen Soul
by Midnight Rider of War
Summary: Sosuke Aizen kidnaps Ichigo shortly after birth, with the intent of guiding the young Kurosaki towards his true potential, while also shaping him into the ultimate weapon for Aizen's use.
1. Not a Night For Smiling

**The Stolen Soul**

**Disclaimer-I do not own Bleach, or any of the related characters, concepts, or anything else. **

**Authors Note-Been a long time since I wrote fanfiction of any sort. I'm looking forward into trying it again, with a nice fresh start. I hope all of you enjoy this story, and if you don't, for some silly reason, then I shall thank you for at least giving it a chance. For this fic I'll be using some of the japenese terms, like shinigami instead of soul reaper, or reiatsu in place of spirit energy. But when it comes to things like names and ranks I'll be using the dub version. Just my preference I'm afraid. Anyway, all that said, lets us begin!**

**Not a Night For Smiling**

Ryuuken allowed himself a small smile as he walked down the hallway of the Karakura Town Hospital. He rarely smiled in his day to day life. There was little reason to do so most days. As a Doctor he spent a great deal of time struggling to save peoples lives. Most of the time he succeeded. He didn't smile on those occasions however. The stress of knowing that whether a person would live or die depended entirely on how well he could do his job left him far to tired for such things.

Then there were those times when he failed to save a life. Those times left him worse than tired. On those days he felt utterly drained. Without the support of his wife, Kanae, he wasn't sure he would be able to keep his sanity intact during those times.

But tonight he felt neither tired nor drained, and there was all the reason in the world to smile. Tonight had seen the birth of his son, Uryuu Ishida. Even now in the earliest hours of the morning as his wife slept, Ryuuken smiled and walked towards the nursery where his son also slept.

He was so focused on that goal that he almost didn't notice the figure in the hall ahead of him, staring through the window into the nursery with a little smile of his own.

Ryuuken blinked in surprise. "Isshin?"

The other man turned towards him with a warm smile. "Ryuuken! I didn't know you were working tonight."

"Keep your voice down." Ryuuken hissed. "Those young babies need their rest."

The other man scratched the back of his head and offered an apologetic smile. "Sorry."

"Forget it." Ryuuken said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Besides, I'm not working tonight."

"Really?" Isshin asked.

"Really." Ryuuken frowned. "More importantly, why are you here?"

"Huh?" Isshin blinked. "I'm surprised you don't already know."

"Why would I know what you do with you're time?" Even as he asked the question a thought occurred to Ryuuken, and his eyes widened. "Wait a minute! You mean to tell me Masaki's had a child?"

"Aha! So you did know after all!" Isshin exclaimed.

"I thought I told you to keep your voice down." Ryuuken glared at the former Shinigami, who merely offered him a sheepish smile in response. "Anyway, I didn't know, but its easy to guess. Why else would you be standing here at the nursery with such a look on your face."

"Maybe I simply enjoy looking at cute babies." Isshin countered.

"Thats an absurdly creepy thing to say." Even as he spoke, Ryuuken turned his gaze towards the nursery. It took only a moment to spot Masaki's child. The small tuft of orange hair was hard to miss, though it was the positioning of the eyes that truly gave it away.

Isshin followed Ryuuken's gaze and smiled again. "I see you've spotted him already. As I'd expect from a guy like you. A quincy like you would need sharp eyes after all." Isshin paused, his face contorting into what Ryuuken guessed was supposed to be a thoughtful expression. "Although now that I think on it, maybe its your glasses that make your eyes so sharp. Its kinda funny thinking of an archer who needs glasses though."

Ryuuken felt his eye twitch. "I assure you that even without these glasses I can see better than you can."

Isshin ignored the remark. "Anyway, you still haven't told me why you're here."

The doctor blew out a long sigh. "Of all the people who might have saved Masaki why did it have to be someone so dense. Can't you figure it out on your own without being told?"

Isshin thought it over for just a moment, then shook his head. "Sorry, I got nothin'."

Ryuuken resisted the urge to make further comments on Isshin's intelligence, or lack thereof. Instead he said "I'm here for the same reason you are."

Isshin frowned. "To see my little Ichigo?"

Ryuuken's eye twitched again. "No, I'm here to see my son, Uryuu."

"What!?" Isshin's eyes went wide as he gaped in astonishment. "You had a kid too!? What a coincidence that our kids were born at the same time!"

Ryuuken's eyes narrowed dangerously, and he felt a faint heat buildig in the quincy cross that dangled from his right wrist. "This is the third time I've had to tell you to keep your voice down. I will not repeat myself again."

"Sorry." Isshin said yet again. "Its just such an exciting event don't you think."

Ryuuken did not say it out loud, but he was in agreement with the one time shinigami. That not only his wife, but also the young women to him he had almost married years ago, had both given birth at the same time was a great coincidence, and gave Ryuuken even greater reason to smile then before.

There was a time when he would have felt remorseful over the way things had ended between him and Masaki. But in the end things had turned out all right, hadn't they? The events that he lead to his seperation from Masaki had seemed like hell itself at the time. But if those events had not trnaspired he would never have gotten the chance to express his love for Kanae. How could he ever feel grief for that?

"I'll bet our sons are destined to have great adventures with each other!" Isshin prattled on.

"That is utterly Ridic-" Ryuuken was cut off mid sentence as his senses registered a flash of Reiatsu. It lasted only for an instant, gone so quickly that Isshin seemed not to notice. But Ryuuken had felt it. Swirling about him like a heavy fog, incredibly powerful.

More disturbing than its power or texture however, was its nature. It was not the hungry reiatsu of a hollow he had just felt, but instead that of a shinigami.

Ryuuken quickly tuned Isshin's babbling and focused his senses. As a pure Quincy he was extremely skilled at detecting Reiatsu. In seconds he located the power he had felt. Whoever it was, they were doing a good job holding in their power, but there was just enough for Ryuuken to detect. His eyes widened in alarm as he felt that reiatsu suddenly change course. It was heading directly for the hospital.

No sooner had he realised this than a figure wrapped in shadow seemed to melt through the back wall of the nursery.

"What the hell!?" It seemed even Isshin was able to notice that.

The figure glanced up at them. Its figure was distorted. Ryuuken thought he caught a glimpse of glasses, but light tself seemed to bend all around the intruder making him all but impossible to see.

There was a moment of absolute stillness. Nothing seemed to move. There wasn't a sound to be heard, other than the beating of his own heart. Then, much to his horror, Ryuuken watched the figure walk directly to Ichigo and scoop the young child of Masaki Kurosaki out of his crib.

"HEY!" Isshin's voice came out with such rage that Ryuulen could have sworn he felt the former shinigami's once formidable reiatsu resonating within the soundwaves from the shout.

Even as that thought crossed his mind he watched, dumbfounded, as Isshin voilently hurled himself into the window seperating nursery from hallway with such force that it seemed to explode.

"You idiot!" Ryuuken shouted. He suddenly found that he no longer cared about keeping his, or Isshin's, voice down at this time.

He sprang through a cascade of falling glass and reached out with his quincy powers. With an exxertion of will he asserted his control ver the reishi in the air and gathered it to himself. In an instant a bow formed from tightly condensed spirit particles formed in his hand, and a quick flurry of low powered quincy arrows deflected all of the falling glass away from the sleeping infants.

Well, formerly sleeping, Ryuuken ammended. The nursery came alive with the sound of babies crying out in terror as their sleep was interrupted.

Paying neither Isshin or Ryuuken any mind, the figure turned and walked back towards the wall through which he had entered.

"Stop!" Isshin was already on his feet and charging. Ryuuken wasn't really sure what happened next. One moment Isshin was on his feet, fist pulled back to smash the person who would dare try to steal his son, and the next he was falling backwards with blood spraying from his chest.

The shadow turned away from his would be attacker, and passed through the wall just as easily as he had when he entered.

With a grimace, Ryuuken charged towards the wall. He threw a quick glance at Isshin as he shot past, taking careful note of the thin yet deep wound that stretched across his chest.

So he had been slashed with a sword. Ryuuken felt a little disturbed by that. He hadn't seen the shadow draw a sword at all. He hadn't seen anything.

This was bad. He was getting in over his head here. He had no idea what he was up against, or what the enemies capabilities were. All he did know was that the enemy was probably a shinigami, and that they were capable of attacking faster than Ryuuken could detect.

Logic dictated that he didn't stand a chance, and that he should abandon his pursuit now and tend to Isshin instead.

Logic could go screw itself. There was no way Ryuuken would allow Masaki's child to be stolen like this.

A single well placed arrow blasted a hole in the wall just large enough for Ryuuke to leap from the hospital and out into the cold night air. Storm clouds filled the sky, and rain hurled itself down from the heavens in a downpour. In these conditions Ryuuken couldn't see his target, but he could hear little Ichigo's wails.

"_There!" _Ryuuken thought. A quick burst of Hirenkyaku carried him ahead of his target. The shadow halted as the quincy cut him off, and regarded Ryuuken with what might have been curiosity, though it was hard to tell without being able to see his face.

Not that Ryuuken cared. All he cared about at that moment was that he could hear Masaki's child crying, and it was this mans fault. Reishi gathered from all around him and gathered into his bow until the intesity of its stored power made it quiver.

In an instant Ryuuken could unleash all of it on his foe.

The shadow must have realised Ryuuken's intent, for it raised Ichigo up in front of its chest with both arms.

Ryuuken cursed. There was no way he could fire without risking the life of Masaki's child.

Seeing the quincy's hesitation, the shadow spoke for the first time. "It seems you have realised your situation, Ryuuke Ishida."

Ryuuken frowned. "How is it you know my name?"

"The Ishida family has been of considerable interest to me in the past, although I don't find you to be particularly interesting. Its this child who truly interests me. The offspring of a shinigami and a quincy. I think he sould make a fine test subject."

Ryuuken felt his blood go cold as he heard that. Fury poured through his veins in an icy torrent. "How dare you speak of Masaki's child that way!"

The shadow shifted, and Ryuuken was able to see a pair of lips stretched into an amused smile. "I believe I may speak about him as I wish. After all, I am the reason this child was ever born."

Ryuuken's confusion was not enough to replace his anger, but it was enough for him to ask "What do you mean?"

"There is no need for you to know." The shadow replied.

Before Ryuuken could say anything else, the shadow vanished.

_Shunpo!_

Ryuuken launched himself to the side with Hirenkyaku. The moment he arrived his bow was already aimed at the spot he had been standing a moment ago. There was nobody there to shoot.

A jolt of pain tore through his entire being, and he could not supress the scream that tore its way from his throat. He looked down, and saw the tip of a katana protruding from his chest.

Then that damned voice spoke from behind him. "Your reflexes are impressive. If this cloak weren't concealing my reiatsu you most likely could have detected my second shunpo in time to avoid my attack. Sadly I don't have time for such games this evening."

The sword tore free from Ryuuken's chest, and he began to fall. As he fell he looked up and finally got a look at the shadows face. Brown hair lightly curled, eyes hidden behind glasses. Even as darkness filled his vision, Ryuuken commitied every detail to memory.

Above him he heard "Farewell, Ryuuken Ishida."

His final thought before passing out was that perhaps tonight was not a night for smiling after all.


	2. Finding The Next Step

**The Stolen Soul**

**Disclaimer:I do not own Bleach, it characters, or any related concepts.**

**Authors Note:Ok, this was a fast update. I would advise you not to expect future updates to be so fast. The only reason I got this chapter out so quickly was because it was already more than half written when I posted chapter one. Anyway, please let me know what you guys think!**

**Finding The Next Step**

The return trip to Soul Society proved uneventful for Sosuke Aizen, not that he had expected any different. All things considered, he felt that this night had been a complete success. True, he had been caught off guard by Ryuuken's intervention, but the quincy had posed little threat in the end.

Now that he was finally free of the world of the living, and safely beyond the reach of anybody who might try to reclaim what he had stolen, he allowed his gaze to travel down to the small child he held in his arms.

Ichigo Kurosaki, a truly remarkable being. Never before had a quincy and a shinigami hybrid existed, at least, not to Aizen's knowledge. Even now, just focusing his senses on the child, he could feel the slightest hint of reiatsu. It wasn't enough to judge the boys true nature, not yet anyway, but the fact that a child so young had any detectable reiatsu at all only served to confirm that the boy was special.

The question was, what was Aizen to do next. The decision to kidnap the Kurosaki boy had been made almost on a whim, with hardly any planning put into it. Aizen had honestly surprised even himself with the spontaneous nature of the decision.

He had of course determined several possible options for what to do with the boy. He could raise him as a weapon to be used in his future battles. Or perhaps he could dissect the child and analyze the deepest aspects of his reiatsu. Perhaps it would be possible to recreate that power once he understood it. Or perhaps not. Maybe it would be best not to do anything to damaging just yet, Aizen decided.

He continued to let his mind whirl through the possibilities as he made his way into the forests which lay at the edge of the Ruukongai districts. One of his older labs was concealed within these woods, and it would make a good place to keep the child hidden until he decided what to do with him.

He had some time to mull it over after all. At the moment he was supposed to be on a two week leave of absence from the Gotei 13, so he wasn't likely to be missed there. Even if somebody were to look after his whereabouts, there was a particularly talented and well paid actor concealed behind Kyoka Suigetsu's illusions currently residing in Aizen's private residence.

Using shunpo, Aizen made it to his lab in good time. Because he had to keep hold of the Kurosaki boy, it took a bit longer than usual to disarm the well hidden, and very lethal traps that guarded the entrance.

Once inside, he carefull placed his new test subject down in a cradle he had acquired for this purpose. It had been a sudden decision on his part to kidnap the boy, but he had planned at least enough to prepare everything he would need to raise the child should he choose a line of experimentation that would not be fatal.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that the boy would be more useful alive rather than dead. Alive, he would grow and develop, and his power would expand. Aizen was certain that he could learn a lot more by watching that development occur, as opposed to a mere dissection. Besides, if at some point the boy proved to be more trouble than he was worth, then Aizen could always dispose of him.

So, what to do with him. Aizen removed his reiatsu concealing cloak and turned once more to regard the Kurosaki boy.

Perhaps he could take the boy to Las Noches, and raise him there as one of his loyal soldiers. Certainly, an enviroment as harsh as Heuco Mundo would force the boy to develop his innate powers in order to survive. Then again, without actually having some power to start with, Kurosaki would be unlikely to survive the bloodthirst of the various Arrancar that Aizen had begun recruiting. A small part of him whispered that the boy wasn't really worth his interest, if he really was unable to survive in those conditions.

Aizen squashed that voice down. It was arrogance to think like that. Ichigo Kurosaki was a mere infant. No matter how special he was now, and no matter how powerful he would become later, it simply wasn't reasonable to expect him to be able to contend with the likes of Barragan or Nnoitra before he even learned to speak.

Perhaps it would be better to undertake Kurosaki's early development here, in the Soul Society. A smile came to Aizen's face as a plan began to take shape in his mind. The truth was, it could be very tricky to maintain these illusions and manipulations of his, no matter how easy he made it look. If he was constantly running off to preform experiments on Ichigo, eventually somebody would notice that something was off. He was sure that some people already distrusted him as it was. It would not be wise to give fuel to those flames.

Besides that, it would be almost impossible for Kurosaki to develop his powers properly if he were confined to this lab all the time.

Fortunately, there was a very simple way to get around both problems. Aizen's smile grew as he rose from his chair and loomed over his new child.

"I suppose I should welcome you to my family, Ichigo Aizen."

* * *

The word had spread through the Sereitei like wild fire. Sosuke Aizen, Captain of the fifth division of the Gotei 13 had gone and adopted a child. The rumors, naturally, had followed closely. There was talk that Sosuke Aizen had chosen to adopt because he had no interest in a wife, yet still wanted to be a father. Others claimed that it was because he himself was incapable of having children even if he did have a female partner.

Then of course there were the ones who insisted that the child really was Aizen's, and that somewhere out there in the Ruukongai was a woman who had fallen for the handsome captain's charms, only to be left behind.

Gin Ichimaru liked that one the best. It had a nice tragic feel to it, and to his way of seeing things, it was something that Aizen might actually do. The man would certainly be cold enough to use a woman in that way, if he thought he could get an interesting test subject out of the deal, and he was patient enough to wait the nine months for the child to be born.

Honestly, Gin thought, it would come as no surprise to him if he were to find out that Aizen had done exactly that sometime in the past. Maybe many times. It was hard to say for sure though. Even now, after so many long decades, Aizen was still careful to never let Gin have any more information than was needed in order to complete whatever task that he wanted Gin to preform.

Still, as fun as it might be to think Aizen was capable of something so human as intercourse, Gin knew that that rumor, along with all the others, were off the mark.

His customary grin widened as he passed by another pair of gossipers, one of many such groups littering the streets of the sereitei this morning, busily discussing the latest rumors regarding the adoption.

"I hear its a political move." A younger looking man was saying. "I hear that Captain Aizen is going raise the kid as his own, then arrange a marriage to one of the great noble houses in order to elevate his own house!"

"Nonesense!" This from a young woman standing opposite the man. "If that were the case then he would have adopted somebody older so he wouldn't have to wait. Its far more likely that he was just lonely and wanted a child around to care for."

"Why would he be lonely, he has an entire division under his command." The man asked. Gin resisted the urge to snort. To Aizen, the people of the fifth division were at best, disposable tools, and at worst, liabilities soon to be disposed of.

The woman was quick with a response. "Those are subordinates, not real friends. He needs somebody who doesn't just see him as an authority figure, but as somebody to be loved."

Ugh, this was getting to sappy for Gin's taste. Perhaps it was time for him to play the rumor game for a short while. True, he had other things to do today, but this wouldn't take to long. Besides, it might be fun.

"I'll bet he kidnapped him." Gin announced loudly. When the two just looked at im in surprise, he elaborated. "I'll bet he went and snatched the poor kid right outa the real parents hands."

"Captain Aizen would never do such a thing!" The woman protested.

Gin's smile stretched so far it nearly reached his ears. He could already tell this would be worth his time. "Oh no? I think he would. He's always looked rather shifty, dontcha think? Those soulless eyes hidden behind those glasses of his. He seems awful creepy to me."

"You're one to talk" the man said with a frown, no doubt taking in Gin's foxlike grin, silver hair, and the eyes squinted so tight that they were practically shut.

"Hmm?" Gin fixed his gaze on the man. "Did ya say somthin' just now?" As he spoke, he let just a bit of his reiatsu out. Not enough to be harmful of course, no point in attracting to much attention after all, but it was enough to make the pair before him very uncomfortable as the weight of his reiatsu pressed down upon them.

"Ah, no!" The man was quick to respond. "Nothing at all!"

"Ya sure?" Gin frowned slightly. "I coulda sworn I head ya say somethin' 'bout me. Somethin' bout me being creepy?"

"Of course not! I would never insult you by saying such a thing!" The poor man repeated. Sweat was pouring down his brow, and he was clearly having a hard time breathing.

To her credit, the woman who had been talking with the man earlier had now backed up to a relatively safe distance. Although, Gin supposed, it wasn't very nice of her to abandon he friend like that. He let his reiatsu expand a bit, and was rewarded with a startled, and somewhat pained gasp from the woman.

"Well, I s'pose if ya say so." Gin shrugged. "I guess I'll be on my way then." He gave a smll wave, and resumed his walk.

Behind him he thought he heard the woman say "Oh my god, I think that was Captain Ichimaru!"

His smile widened. It felt good to be popular.

* * *

The residence of Sosuke Aizen was a small traditionaly built home in secluded spot surrounded by trees on the outskirts of the Sereitei. It was a place that had a peaceful atmosphere to it. Come on in, it seemed to say, you are welcome here.

Nobody could have hoped to guess the nature of the man who called this place his home simply by looking upon it.

Oddly enough, Gin thought Aizen really did view this place as a home of sorts. For all his deceptions and manipulations, and for all his ambitions and desires for godhood, the man seemed to genuinely like the serenity of this place.

He had once toyed with the idea that maybe Aizen only wanted Gin to believe that. But then, what possible purpose could such a deception serve? Amusement, perhaps? That was possible, Gin supposed. Where Aizen was concerned, nothing was for certain.

Well, no point in delaying, Gin supposed. He approached the door and knocked three times. A moment later the door slid open, revealing Sosuke Aizen, dressed in a dark blue kimono.

"Ah, Gin." Aizen greeted with a pleasant smile. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Nothin' much, Captain Aizen. Just bringing over some paperwork from that joint operation last week." Gin responded. He reached into his haori and withdrew a scroll, which he passed to Aizen.

"I see, thank you. But wouldn't that have been a task better delegated to one of your subordinates?" Aizen quirked an eyebrow at him.

Gin merely shrugged in response. "Normally I suppose, but I heard ya went an' adopted a kid. Figured I should come meet him."

"Ah, of course." Aizen nodded, and gestured for Gin to enter the house. "I agree with you fully."

Gin's smile faltered slightly as he followed Aizen inside. He never did like entering any place that belonged to Aizen. It didn't really matter, he knew. If Aizen wanted him dead, he could easily kill him anywhere, and Kyoka Suigetsu would gaurantee that there were no witnesses to the act.

It was more a matter of principle than anything else. Outside, in the rest of the Soul Society, Gin could enjoy the illusion that he and Aizen were equals. Certainly thats how the rest of the world viewed them. Two captains of the Gotei 13, both standing at the height of spiritual power.

Yet Gin knew better. He knew all to well of the vast difference in power that seperated him from his former captain. There was no equality between them, and here in Aizen's domain, Gin felt that truth acutely enough to make his skin crawl. It was a good thing he was so important to Aizen's plans.

Once the door had shut behind them, Gin dared to say "I was surprised hear that you had gone an' taken Isshin's kid like that. Maybe even as surprised as all those gossipers were when they found you had adopted."

"Yes, well, it was a sudden decision on my part." Aizen admitted as they walked farther into the house. Aizen led Gin down a hallway to a room at the back of the house. There, sleeping soundly in a plain looking cradle, was Ichigo Kurosaki. Although, Gin supposed that wasn't really the kids name anymore.

"Here he is." Aizen announced. "The offspring of Isshin Shiba, and Masaki Kurosaki. The first hybrid of quincy and shinigami."

"I see." Gin nodded, and indeed he did see. Such a rare being couldn't help but be interesting after all. "But what do ya plan on doin' with him?"

"Well, thats the tricky part. In reality, it won't be possible to conduct any meaningful experiments until he grows older, so for the time being it'll be best for me to raise him as if he really were my own."

Gin frowned as he observed the child. "Sounds like a pain to me."

Aizen shrugged slightly. "Perhaps, but it will provide me the opportunity to observe how his reiatsu evolves as he ages. Such information could prove quite valuable, and if I so choose it will allow me to instill absolute loyalty in him."

"Ah, I get it." Gin did get it. It made sense after all. Deprive the opposition of a future ally, and get a shiny new weapon for yourself in the process. A good move overall, except for one minor problem.

"Won't his family come looking for him?"

"Indeed." Aizen turned a humorless smile on Gin as he spoke. "Probably quite soon. We shall have to be ready for them."

For the first time since entering the house, Gin's smile returned in full. "Sounds like fun."

* * *

Neither Isshin nor Masaki uttered a word as they walked slowly down the streets of Karakura town. For Isshin's part, he simply didn't have the energy for his normal antics. Tessai had managed to heal his wound fairly well after he and Urahara had arrived at the hospital, but his wound wasn't what was bothering him.

Someone, or something had come and stolen his and Masaki's child in front of his very eyes, and he'd been powerless to stop it from happening. He was Ichigo's father, and it was his duty to guard his son, but when the time had come, he had been useless.

He felt a growl starting to form low in his throat. Forcing it down, he made himself take his thoughts away from his failure, and looked instead to Masaki. She had been devestated when she had discovered what had happened. Isshin had never heard such frantic screams, or such hysterical sobbing.

It had terrified him to his core to see Masaki like that. Between the two of them, she was supposed to be the calm one. In the following days she had gone silent, not uttering so much as a word. She barely ate, and Isshin knew she wasn't sleeping. He could tell by the bags under her eyes, and by the way she swayed from side to side as she walked beside him, as if she could collapse at any moment.

He knew he should be saying comforting things to her, trying to make her feel better. But for once in his life, he couldn't find any words to say. There was nothing he could say that could help, that could make it better. He couldn't even promise to go and rescue Ichigo. Maybe once he could have, before he sacrificed his powers to save Masaki from the hollow that dwelt within her soul, but now he was truly helpless.

The only comfort he had been able to offer her was the promise that Urahara would have a plan, because Urahra always had a plan. No matter what the situation was, the one time shinigami was always prepared.

Masaki had hardly seemed to hear him when he said as much, though she had been willing to come with him to Urahara's shop. Isshin truly hoped that he was right about Urahara, because if he wasn't, he feared he would soon lose his wife as well.

It wasn't long before they arrived at the Urahara store. It was a small and dingy looking building, hardly more than a shack. Yet inside that building resided one of the sharpest minds the Soul Society had ever known, as well as a particularly talented master of kido.

"We're here honey." Isshin said softly. "Don't worry, soon everything will be alright again."

As expected, Masaki barely responded, offering him little more than an almost imperceptible nod. Isshin glared up at the gloomy sky above as a wave of anger crashed through him. He swore, if he ever caught the bastard who had taken his son from him, and reduced his wife to this pitiful state, he'd make the bastard beg for death.

Being careful not to let his wife see his anger, he led her into the Urahara shop. "Hey, we're here!" Isshin called out.

"In the back!" Kisuke's voice called from deeper in the store.

Isshin led Masaki between shelves and down isles until they came to a sliding door separating Kisuke's private rooms from the main building. He slid open the door and stepped in.

Inside, he saw Kisuke Urahara, dressed in his usual ridiculous looking green gi and haori. To his left sat Yoruichi Shihoin, one time leader of the Onmitsukido, dressed in black leggings and form fitting orange shirt. Lastly was Tessai, seated to Urahara's right. He was dressed in a simple white shirt, jeans, and blue apron.

Isshin wan't surprised to see that Ryuuken wasn't here. Although Tessai had healed the quincies wounds before they had even found Isshin, the damage had been severe. It had been several days since the abduction, but it would be several more before Ryuuken had recovered enough to join them.

"Ah, Isshin, and Masaki as well." Kisuke greeted. Isshin was both grateful, and alarmed, to hear how somber the shopkeeper sounded. He was grateful because it showed that Kisuke was taking this very seriously. But it was also alarming. For Kisuke Urahara to sound this serious, the situation had to be very bad.

"Please, sit." Kisuke said, gesturing towards the only two remaining empty seats.

"What have you found out, Kisuke?" Isshin demanded quietly.

"Right to buisness eh?" Kisuke nodded. "Good, this matter is even more grave than you realize."

"Really?" Isshin found that hard to believe.

"Really." Came the reply. "Although he was to weak to attend this meeting, Ryuuken did regain conciousness. More importantly, he got a look at the kidnappers face, and was able to describe it to me."

Isshin's eyes went wide. This was good news. If they knew who was responsible, then it was only a matter of time before they caught the bastard and saved Ichigo.

Evidently Masaki agreed. New life seemed to fill her as she leaned forward. "Who!? Who took my baby?" Her voice was filled with ice and fire, but everyone present caught the desperate undertone, and the fear.

Kisuke blew out a pained sigh, and regarded both Isshin and Masaki with wary eyes. "If Ryuuken's description is accurate, then the kidnapper was Sosuke Aizen."

Isshin's blood ran cold, and in an instant his hope fled him, replaced only by dread. Sosuke Aizen, a man who had spent decades performing horrific experiments on countless people, Ruukongai citizen and shinigami alike. A man who had destroyed countless lives with his hollwfication experiments, and who had always been able to use Kyoka Suigetsu's power to place the blame for his crimes on the shoulders of those few who survived his interest.

That was the man wh had taken his son, who had him even now. That was the man who had had unrestricted access to his son, his wifes baby, for days now.

"Are you sure?" Isshin asked, daring to hope that Kisuke would provide him with some piece of information that could disprove Aizen's involvement. But he knew better than that.

"I'm afraid so." Kisuke said.

From her spot at the table, Yoruichi said "I got in touch with a few of my old contacts. Apparently Aizen took a leave of absense not long ago. He had the time, and we already suspected that he was there the night you two met. Its not surprising he's taken an interest in your child. I just wish I had known he would act so soon."

"Shit!" Isshin couldn't help the expletive that tore itself from his throat. "Kisuke, you have to restore my shinigami powers right away so I can go after him!"

"I can't." Kisuke said, sounding apologetic. "If I did, then the hollow inside of Masaki would overtake her immediately."

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do!?" Isshin roared. He couldn't help it. Images whirled through his mind of all the horrible things that might be happening to Ichigo right this moment, and each one brought new waves of terror and fury crashing down into the very core of his being.

"You will do nothing." Yoruichi announced, her voice calm but fierce. "I will travel to the Soul Society myself, and retrieve Ichigo." The former empress of the Shihoin clan offered him a small smile. "Don't worry, my stealth and speed are unmatched. I'll be in and out before Aizen suspects a thing."

Isshin forced himself to take some calming breaths. Finally, when he thought he was capable of speaking with something approaching calm, he said "Thank you. I'm sorry for my outburst. I just feel like I should be doing something to help."

"What you should do," Tessai began, speaking for the first time since the meeting began. "is make sure you're ready to raise ichigo into a fine man once Yoruichi gets back."

"Yeah, I guess so." Isshin said gratefully. He felt a small measure of comfort coming back to him. So of course, something else had to happen.

"Sosuke Aizen?" Masaki muttered quietly. "Thats who took my little Ichigo?"

"Um, yes." Kisuke confirmed. "Thats what all the evidence points to."

"In that case, Yoruichi, I'm coming with you!" Masaki's declaration came with a strength she hadn't exhibited since well before Ichigo's kidnapping.

"But honey, you can't go! It'll be dangerous!" Isshin's protests died on his lips when Masaki turned eyes of fire on him.

"Don't you dare tell me I can't go after my own child, Isshin Kurosaki! I don't care how dangerous it is, I won't leave Ichigo's fate in the hands of anyone but myself!"

Feeling defeat settle on his shoulders, Isshin nodded meakly. He couldn't bring himself to say anymore.

"Well, seeing as thats all settled, I believe its time Tessai and myself set to work opening the senkaimon." That said Kisuke got to his feet, and made his way to the door. Before he stepped out, he turned and addressed Masaki and Yoruichi one more time.

"Be careful, we won't have any way of staying in touch once you arrive in Soul Society, and thanks to my exile I can't follow even if I do think something has gone wrong. You must be absolutely perfect, understand?"

Yoruichi rolled her eyes at him. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

Urahara smiled. "Of course, you already know all that. Forget I spoke." He turned away. "Get ready you two. The senakimon will be ready in ten minutes."

* * *

**Authors Note: Not gonna lie, typing "Ichigo Aizen" as a single name feels really freaking weird!**


	3. Approach the Enemy In Silence

**The Stolen Soul**

**Approach The Enemy In Silence**

**Disclaimer-I do not own Bleach, or any related things.**

**Authors Note: Alright, this came out a bit faster than I expected it to. In part that's because I decided that some of the things I wanted to do with this chapter would simply work better in the next chapter instead. **

**Anyway, I want to thank everyone one for reading this story. My heart flutters every time I look at the view counter and see that its gone up. I also want to thank everyone who has reviewed so far. It is so encouraging to know that you guys consider my story to be not only worth the time it takes to read, but also worth the time to provide feedback. So truly, thank you.**

**All right, enough of me being mushy. On with the show!**

* * *

Yoruichi Shihoin would never admit it, but she felt a certain anxiety about this mission. She was absolutely confident in her skills as the former commander of the Onmitsukido. Her master of the shunpo technique was so great that it had earned her the title 'Flash Goddess Yoruichi'. Well, she had actually given that title to herself. In fairness however, in all her centuries of life, nobody had ever been able to take that title away from her.

She had every confidence in her ability to remain undetected as well. She had spent more than a century as the sole leader of what amounted to an entire army of assasins. To her stealth and secrecy were second nature. Besides, she could always shapeshift into her cat form in order to escape detection if things got really dicey.

No, it wasn't any doubt in herself that caused her anxiety. Rather, she was concerned about the woman with long strawberry blond hair who currently stood at her side in the massive cavern that rested beneath the Urahara shop, waiting for Kisuke and Tessai to finish opening the Senkaimon that would take them to the Soul Society.

She had no doubt in Masaki's skills as a quincy, of course. The woman had managed to kill the mysterious hollow that even Isshin with his once monstrous reiatsu had been unable to defeat. What truly worried Yoruichi was the other womans emotional state. Masaki's primary goal was to rescue her son, but what if she should catch sight of Sosuke Aizen in the process? Could Masaki be trusted to keep her emotions in check, or would she blow their cover in order to seek bloody vengeance against the monster who had shattered her world overnight?

If Masaki couldn't keep control of her emotions then they could both be killed, and Ichigo would remain in Aizen's hands with no possibility of a second rescue attempt. The worst part about it was no matter how well founded Yoruichi's concerns might be, she could not and would not ask Masaki to stay behind. For one thing the young quincy would never agree. Besides that, as Ichigo's mother, Masaki had more right than anyone else, except maybe Isshin, to go after her son.

"Masaki." Yoruichi said quietly, so only the other woman could hear. When Masaki turned to face her Yoruichi continued.

"If we're going to do this, I need you to follow my lead."

"Of course." Masaki replied. "Just so long as we save Ichigo."

"Right." Yoruichi nodded her agreement. "I have a few rules."

"What?"

"First," Yoruichi began, holding up one finger. "we don't want to attract any attention. If all goes well, we'll be back here with Ichigo before Aizen ever knows we were in Soul Society. But for that to happen, we can't say or do anything to arouse suspicioun. Aizen has spies anywhere. So just let me do all the talking, all right?"

"Right." Masaki agreed.

Yoruichi smiled. It was good that Masaki was willing to cooperate with her. Maybe she really was in control of her emotions right now. Perhpas all of Yoruichi's concerns were unfounded. Still, just staying low wasn't going to be enough.

Yoruichi raised a second finger. "Rule two, if we do get detected, and a confrontation is unavoidable, you run. I can buy time for you to escape."

Masaki frowned. "But if I did that I'd be leaving you to fight on your own. You could be killed."

"We could both be killed trying to pull this off." Yoruichi retorted. "But if I need to I can evade Aizen. I can escape. You might be good in a fight, but you wouldn't be able to escape from Aizen in a direct confrontation, and you can't beat him either. I at least would have a chance of escape, you would just be killed."

Masaki winced at the bluntness of Yoruichi's words, but the one time assasin could see understanding in her eyes.

"Alright Yoruichi. If it comes to it, I'll run and trust you to escape on your own." That said, Masaki fixed Yoruichi with a hard stare, bordering on a glare. "However, under no circumstances will I leave my son behind."

"I wouldn't ask you to." Yoruichi replied reassuringly.

"Good."

"One last rule." Yoruichi declared, raising a third finger. "No matter how well things are going, no matter how good the situation looks, if I say fall back, we fall back. No questions."

Masaki frowned, and her eyes narrowed into a real glare. "You just said you wouldn't ask me to abandon my son."

"I won't." Yoruichi replied. "But the time may come when we need to make a temporary retreat, understand?"

Masaki took a deep breath, and blew it out with a sigh. "Yeah, I get it. I'm sorry."

Shaking her head, Yoruichi placed her hand upon Masaki's shoulder. "You have nothing to be sorry for. This is a hard time for you. But between the two of us, we'll put an end to it."

Yoruichi could have sworn that Masaki almost smiled at that. "Right."

Well, that settled that. Yoruichi didn't really have anything else she could say to her companion at the moment. Now all that was left for her to do was wait for Kisuke. Actually, what was taking that man so long to complete such a simple task.

A glance over to where he was working revealed nothing out of the ordinary to Yoruichi's eyes. Kisuke had set up the stone conversion gate that would generate the Senkaimon, and allow both Yoruichi and Masaki to pass through the dangai precpice world and into the Soul Society. But for whatever reason, rather than turning the damn thing on, Kisuke and Tessai seemed to be taking a chat break.

Working to suppress a growing sense of irritation, Yoruichi began walking towards Kisuke. "I'll be just a minute, Masaki."

Not waiting for a response, she quickly made her way over to the conversion gate. Kisuke glanced up from his conversation with Tessai, and a sheepish smile crossed his face.

"Sorry about the delay. Tessai and myself were just working out the last couple details."

Yoruichi crossed her arms. "Details?"

"Indeed." Kisuke replied. "In fact, you're just the person we need to make our last adjustment."

Yoruichi quirked an eyebrow, silently waiting for him to elaborate.

Tessai chose to speak instead. "As you know, the Senkaimon can't be left open for long periods of time without serious risk of discovery. Therefore, we wanted to implement a system where the Senkaimon would automaticly activate for a short period of time at a specific point each day."

Yoruichi nodded thoughtfully as she listened. It was a good idea. She had planned to ask Kukaku Shiba if she could provide them with a way back once they had succesfully retrieved Ichigo. She would most likely need to contact her old friend anyway to get all the up to date information. For a recluse, Kukaku always had surprisingly solid, and recent intel.

But having a set time and place where they could freely leave the Soul Society seemed like a better idea overall, and it would that she would have one less thing to burden Kukaku with.

"What we need from you is the specific time you think will fit best into your rescue plan." Kisuke was saying.

Yoruichi resisted the urge to snort. "I can't really form a good rescue plan until I have better information, but I'd bet on sometime in the night."

"I thought as much." Kisuke declared. "I know you so well after all. Now, how about midnight then?"

"That seems a bit cliché doesn't it?" Yoruichi asked. Kisuke just smiled at her. "Fine, yes, that will work fine Kisuke. How long should we expect each opening to be?"

Kisuke's smile vanished, replaced immediately by a more somber look. "No more than four minutes."

Yoruichi nodded. That was certainly doable. True, most people would need considerably longer than four minutes to pass through the dangai precipice world, but then most people weren't the flash goddess Yoruichi.

"Since we're agreed, we can get the senkaimon open now." Kisuke abruptly turned away and moved back to the conversion gate.

Yoruichi gestured for Masaki to join her even as swirling light filled the conversion gate. Yoruichi took a deep breath as she turned to face the opening Senkaimon. It had been a long time since she had travelled to the Soul Society. She had made an effort to keep tabs on things of course, but never through direct investigation. Before now she had always considered the possibility of detection by either Aizen, or the Central 46 to be to great a risk.

But this situation was a bit different. Now there wasn't just a life on the line, but the life of a close friends child. Though she had often been accused of cold blooded murder, something which she had certainly done during her days as an assasin, and of being heartless, something which had never been true, she simply didn't have it in her to sit idle under these circumstances.

She wondered what all her old enemies would think about that.

"Alright, the Senkaimon is open." Kisuke announced wearily. "You should get moving, it won't be open long."

Yoruichi glanced sideways at Masaki. "Ready?"

Masaki didn't look back. "Of course."

As one, the two women launched themselves into the senkaimon.

* * *

The trip through the Senkaimon passed quickly. Masaki's hirenkyaku was fast enough to keep up with Yoruichi's shunpo well enough, and the older woman knew exactly where to lead them.

Despite the relatively short journey, Masaki had taken the chance to observe the dangai world around her. Although she had been involved in spiritual matters all her life, she had never had reason to travel to the Soul Society before. Normally such a journey was reserved exclsuively for shinigami, and the spirits of the dead.

She had been rather distburbed by the place. It wasn't just the poor lighting, or the towering walls of sludge that seemed to reduce all of the world into a claustrophobic corridor. Nor was it the near total absence of noise outside of her and Yoruichi's footsteps.

Instead, it was the feel of the place. This felt like a place where nothing lived, had ever lived, or could ever live. Though the air carried no particular oder, it still seemed to Masaki as though every time she inhaled in this place she was welcoming death itself into her being.

When they finally reach the end and passed through the dangai world and into the Soul Society Masaki felt an intense feeling of relief, as though she had just walked through hell itself unscathed.

When she mentioned as much to Yoruichi the other woman chuckled. "No, hell is much worse." Maskai felt a shiver down her spine, and chose not to pursue that line of conversation any further.

Masaki took a moment to observe their new surroundings. They were stood in a grassy clearing, surrounded by towering pine trees, along with a variety of plants.

"This is a good spot." Yoruichi observed. "Its not likely that anybody will come wandering around in a place like this, so we won't have to worry about somebody discovering the Senakimon while we're out and about."

"So, whats our first move?" Masaki asked.

"Well, knowing Kisuke we are somewhere in the western Rukongai districts. First thing we need to do is find a town or landmark that will tell us exactly where. Then all we have to do is track down the Shiba clan." Yoruichi explained.

Masaki remembered Isshin talking of the Shiba clan. He had once been a proud member of the clan. From all Isshin had told her about his family, Masaki was certain that they would be happy to assist in rescuing Ichigo. However, something about the way Yoruichi had phrased that made Masaki nervous.

" Isn't the Shiba family one of the four great noble families?"

"They are." The other woman confirmed.

"Then why do we need to track them down? Shouldn't they be easy to find?"

A dark look crossed Yoruichi's face. "Once, maybe. But after the murder of Kaien Shiba at the hands of an unknown hollow, the entire family fell out of grace. Whats worse, the current clan leader, Kukaku Shiba, became paranoid. She felt that the Shiba's were being targeted. Now they tend to stay in hiding, frequently changing location so they can't be found by their enemies. Can't say I blame them either."

Masaki had a sinking feeling." Why not?"

Yoruichi hesitated before answering. Just for an instant, but it was enough for Masaki to notice. "Because my information suggests that the hollow that killed Kaien was one of Sosuke's Aizen's experiments."

Masaki tried to ignore the sensation of ice that those words brought to her veins. Everything she learned of this man, this Sosuke Aizen, made her fear for Ichigo's life grow stronger and stronger.

After that Yoruichi led her from the clearing and along several trails and pathways that Masaki might not have been able to find on her own. By the time they emerged from the trees and into a more open area the sun was starting to dip low in the sky, as though it was as tired as Masaki was.

It didn't take long after that before they stumbled across a small village. Masaki was surprised at the run down look of the place, and by the tired looks on the faces of the few people who were out and about at this hour. Some of them looked like they hadn't smiled in years. That wasn't surprising when one considered how raggedy their clothes were, or the fact that nobody seemed to even have footwear of any kind, or the fact that many of the buildings seemed as though they might collapse at any moment.

It didn't seem right to Masaki that these people should live in what was clearly a state of poverty and decay here in the afterlife. Wasn't the afterlife supposed to be where you went to enjoy eternal rest after the hardships of life?

When she voiced the thought the other woman simply told her that some districts were better than others, and said no more. Ultimately Masaki chose not to dwell on it to much. It wasn't a problem she could fix after all. Even if it were, she would not have had the time to address it. As noble as the thought of single-handedly fixing everything wrong with the world was, her son had to come first.

As long as Ichigo remained in danger, nothing else mattered.

Masaki waited on the outskirts of the village while Yoruichi went in to find out exactly where they were. It didn't take long for Yoruichi to make her return with a scowl locked onto her features.

"Of course Kisuke would put us at the outskirts of the Rukongai districts. Even if we use high speed movement techniques we're looking at a three day journey to reach the seireitei, at least!"

"Isn't that good?" Masaki asked. "If we're that far out then theres no way we would be noticed, and we can gather more information from the locals on the way there."

"All true." Yoruichi conceded. "But it also means we're going to have a long way to run to get back to the Senkaimon in the event that we're caught."

"I don't think that matters, since its only going to be open at midnight anyway."

Yoruichi bliked at Masaki, then smiled at her. "You're right, maybe Kisuke actually does know what he's doing then. Its still going to be a long trip."

"Then we'd best get started."

The journey quickly turned into one of the most grueling challenges Masaki had ever faced. Her skill with hirenkyaku was reasonably advanced for a quincy of her level, but she'd never had to use it for long stretches of time before. She simply wasn't use to expending so much energy so fast. Even if she were, Yoruichi set a punishing enough pace that Masaki wondered if perhaps the other woman was trying to kill her through sheer exhaustion.

The situation was urgent of course, so Masaki didn't mind, and she was more than willing to put in the effort. She did wish that Yoruichi would at least pretend to be having difficulty as well, but no such luck.

As they came closer to the Seireitei Yoruichi began making more frequent stops to question one local or another in an effort to determine where they could find the Shiba clan.

During the second day of non stop travel they found a travelling merchant who claimed that Kukaku had set up shop near a waterful only a few hours away. This new information in mind, they changed direction.

* * *

It struck Masaki that the Shiba house was one of the truly few buildings she had ever seen that managed to be both sizable and modest at the same time. The wooden arches and pillars managed to convery elogance without seeming pretentious. The house was located only a few hundred yards from a waterfall, just as the merchant had claimed.

For her part Yoruichi seemed happier than Masaki had ever seen her when the house came into view. Masaki wasn't sure what the relationship between Yoruichi and Kukaku was, but she could tell that the other woman was looking forward to the meeting.

As they approached the door a man dressed in a white shirt and green pants stepped forward to greet them.

"Greetings Lady Yoruichi. Lady Kukaku will be glad to see you after so long." The man said, offering a slight bow.

Yoruichi smiled at the man "Hello yourself, Koganehiko. Wheres Shiroganehiko? You two are almost always together."

"Ah, he's currently running errands along with Ganju for the master. There are some ingredients that she's been running low on lately."

"I see." Yoruichi nodded. "Well, may we go in?"

"Of course, Lady Yoruichi. I will lead you and your companion to her right away." Koganehiko declared with another bow.

"Thank you." Yoruichi replied.

Masaki followed the two of them into the house. Under better circumstances she might have wanted to stop and take some time to admire the interior of the place. While it might have been a fairly normal home by the standards of the Soul Society, it was quite old fashioned in its design by the standards of the world of the living. It was quite charming in Masaki's eyes.

But there was no time for such things. They had already taken longer than she had wanted, and even after this meeting they still had a days journey to reach the Seireitei. The sooner they got this over with the better.

Koganehiko led them to a sliding door, but before he could announce them a womans voice spoke.

"Oi, Koganehiko! It seems like we have an important guest! Send her in right away."

Koganehiko bowed to the door. "Of course Lady Kukaku!" With a quick movement he drew the door open and gestured for Yoruichi and Masaki to enter.

They entered into a large sparsely decorated room. At the far end of the room, a woman sat atop a pile of pillows. This, Masaki supposed, must be Kukaku Shiba. Kukaku was dressed in a white skirt and red robe that left little to the imagination. For some reason she had wrapped a number of bandages around her black hair. But the most striking thing was that her right arm was missing.

While Masaki took in the apperance of their host, Yoruichi and Kukaku engaged in conversation.

"Yoruichi, its been a long time since I've seen your face."

"Its been to long." Yoruichi agreed. "Sadly, I'm afraid I don't have time to talk much on this visit."

"Oh?" Kukaku looked past Yoruichi and at Masaki, who felt rather uncomfortable under her gaze. "I assume its something to do with your companion?"

"That is Masaki Kurosaki, the woman Isshin married." Yoruichi announced solemnly.

Kukaku's eyes widened momentarily before she looked back at Masaki. The poor woman felt as if Kukaku's gaze was piercing through her and into the very core of her being.

"Uh, nice to meet you." Masaki said, hoping she didn't sound to nervous.

"Well, at least uncle has good taste." Kukaku said after a long moment of silence.

Masaki wasn't sure how to respond. Luckily she didn't have to, as Yoruichi was already speaking.

"I've come to ask for your help in a very serious matter, Kukaku."

"Yeah? Something dangerous?" Kukaku asked.

"Extremely." Yoruichi confirmed.

A broad grin spread over Kukaku's face. "Excellent! Then of course I'll help out. Things have been pretty boring around here lately anyway."

Masaki's eye twitched, and she felt a bit of anger rising up. "You should take this seriously." She said coldly.

Kukaku frowned at her. "Hey Yoruichi, whats up with her?"

"Masaki and Isshin had a child together not long ago." Yoruichi said.

"Thats right." Masaki interrupted. She didn't care that it was rude. Ignoring the scowl that Kukaku was sending her way, she pressed on. "Not long ago I had a baby, my beautiful son Ichigo. But, on that same night he was kidnapped, and we need your help to find him. So you better be taking this completely seriously!"

She was almost shouting on the last sentence. She blinked in surprise at her own outburst. She hadn't realised just how tightly wound she was, though she supposed it wasn't a surprise. She had a right to be angry after all.

Kukaku observed her, her expression now blank. "I see." She stood and turned to face Yoruichi. "You should have mentioned right away that a member of the Shiba clan had been kidnapped."

"Sorry."

Kukaku scowled. "Don't tell me you're sorry. Tell me exactly what happened, and what you need from me."

So Yoruichi began explaining the stiuation to Kukaku. While she did, Masaki took the chance to observe the Shiba woman more closely. Her attitude was completely different from a moment ago. The instant the kidnapping had been brought up all traces of smiles or humor had fled her.

What was more, the longer she listened to Yoruichi's explanation, the more and more anger Masaki could see building up behind her light blue eyes, as if Kukaku herself had been the one to lose her child, and not Masaki.

"I see." Kukaku muttered once Yoruichi had finished her tale. "I had heard that Aizen had adopted a child, but I never imagined that he had actually kidnapped a member of my family."

Masaki's eyes narrowed. "Adopted? He "adopted" my son?"

"Seems that way." Kukaku replied. "At the very least that means we can assume that Ichigo is unharmed for now. But to think he would really still come after us, does he really think this can go unanswered?"

Yoruichi shrugged. "Who knows?.

"Hell if I do." The Shiba woman grumbled. "But I bet I do know why you're here. You need information, right?" Seeing Yoruichi nod, Kukaku continued. "Alright, I can tell you exactly where Aizen's house is, and when he's likely to not be there."

"It will have to be at night sometime." Yoruichi said. "The risk of being spotted is to great during the day."

Kukaku nodded her agreement. "Right. Luckily for us Aizen tends to spend several nights out of the week at the fifth division headquarters, probably to maintain his bullshit image of being the best guy ever."

"Surely he doesn't leave his home unguarded?"

"No." Kukaku shook her head. "He has an assistant hired, a guy who looks after his so called son whenever he's not around."

"Alright. All we need now is that exact location of his house, and his schedule, and we can make our move." Yoruichi announced. Masaki felt something akin to relief at those words. To her it felt like an eternity since Ichigo had been taken away from her.

"Of course. But first," Kukaku fixed her stare onto Masaki once again. "You look like you haven't slept in days, and I'll bet Yoruichi ran you prettey hard getting here. You two will spend the night here."

Masaki's protest was instantaneous. "We can't do that! Ichigo has already been gone to long!"

Kukaku stood to her feet and slowly began walking towards Masaki. The slow and deliberate nature of her movements reminded Masaki of a predator stalking its prey.

"I may not have met him, but Ichigo is a member of the Shiba family, so I want him rescued as badly as you do. Therefore I insist that you get some rest here first. I won't have this operation failing because you fell asleep halfway through, got it?"

There was a dangerous edge in the Shiba womans voice now, one that sent shivers running up and down Masaki's spine. Nevertheless, she stood her ground.

"Ichigo is my son! Do you understant that!? I will not abandon him, no matter what the reason!"

Kukaku stepped to within a few inches of Masaki and glared directly into her eyes. There burned within the Shiba womans eyes such a fury that Masaki feared that she might be crushed beneath the weight of that gaze. Slowly it dawned on her that what she was actually feeling was this womans reiatsu.

"Now you listen here, little girl. I've been doing this kind of thing since before your grandparents were born. I've seen countless missions failed and battles lost because one idiot or another thought they could get the job down after going for days without sleep. You aren't going anywhere until I say so, because I'm not giving you any information until I am certain you are well enough to get the job done."

"But-" Masaki tried to protest again.

Kukaku was having none of it. "You came to me, remember? This is my house, and these are my rules. If you don't like it, then you can turn around and go home, and I'll take care of this myself. Now, am I clear?"

Masaki wanted to say no, she wanted to protest. But she couldn't. This woman was probably the only person in Soul Society who would help them, and she wasn't wrong about how tired Masaki was.

So instead of protesting, she agreed. "Yes ma'am."

"Good." Kukaku noddded and walked away. "Koganehiko will show you to your room."

* * *

Later that night, once they were both sure Masaki was getting the rest she so desperately needed, Yoruichi and Kukaku left the house and wandered down towards the waterfall in a comfortable silence.

It had been decades since the last time Yoruichi had had the chance to see Kukaku, yet she found that she had little to say to her. It was good enough just to be in the company of an old friend. Kukaku evidently felt the same, for she offered no attempts at small talk.

It was a beautiful night out. Only the thinnest wisps of clouds drifted in the sky, and the moon hung full in the sky above them. Though the temperature was cool and there was a slight breeze it was not enough to be uncomfortable.

Yes, it was nice to just walk and listen to the sound of crickets in the distance, along with the much closer sound of water crashing down upon worn rocks. But eventually the silence between them had to be broken.

"You know what you're doing is dangerous." Kukaku said. It wasn't a question.

"Yeah." Yoruichi nodded. "Probably the most dangerous thing I've ever done."

The Shiba woman scoffed. "I doubt that. Surely the former leader of the Shihoin clan has preformed more dangerous tasks than rescuing an infant?"

Yoruichi allowed a smile onto her features. "True enough, although Sosuke Aizen was never involved in those incidents."

Kukaku sighed. "I wish I could tag along and help you out more directly." The Shiba woman frowned as glanced at the stump where her right arm had once been. "Sadly I'm not quite the fierce warrior I used to be."

"Don't worry about it." Yoruichi replied. "What you're doing for us is already enough.

Kukaku nodded, then gestured back towards the house. "What about her? Is she up to this?"

Yoruichi considered for only a moment. "Yes, I think so. She understands the need for stealth, and she can fight if need be."

After a moment of silence Kukaku frowned. "I'm sensing a 'but' in there."

Yoruichi blew out a long sigh. "The truth is I'm worried that her emotions might get the better of her, and compromise the mission."

Kukaku nodded in understanding, and for a while silence resumed. A stream wound its way downhill from the waterfall, and by mutual unspoken agreement both women took seats at the edge of the water. For a time they simply enjoyed the sound of the running water.

Eventually Kukaku found more to say. "You should leave her behind."

Yoruichi blinked in surprise. She certainly hadn't expected Kukaku to say that. "I'm sorry?"

Kukaku shrugged. "From what you say she could become a liability. I know how badly she wants to save her child, anybody could see it, but maybe thats not for the best."

Yoruichi shook her head. "Sorry. I can't leave Masaki out of this, not when she's come this far."

"She could get killed." Kukaku met Yoruichi's eyes. "Or she could screw up and get you killed."

"Maybe." Yoruichi allowed. "But then, I could get killed even if I do go on my own. Besides, if I did what you're suggesting and failed, I don't think Masaki would be able to scucceed on her own. Especially since then Aizen would know to expect her."

Kukaku went silent for moment. Perhaps, Yoruichi thought, she was trying to find a flaw in her argument. She must not have found one, because after a moment Kukaku let out a weary sigh.

"I suppose you're right, Yoruichi."

The former Shihoin empress smiled. "Of course I am."

Kukaku's response was completely serious. "You weren't wrong when you said this is probably the most dangeorus thing you've ever done, so be careful. I don't want either of your deaths on my consience. So you better make sure you bring both her and yourself back here alive."

"Yeah." Yoruichi gazed into the water, into the eyes of her own reflection. Could she say with absolute certainty that she could do as Kukaku wished? Perhaps, and perhaps not. In the end what really mattered in this moment was not whether or not she could say it as a certainty. No, what truly mattered was that she could say it with confidence. In the end, for Yoruichi Shihoin, that much was easy. If there was one thing Yoruichi knew how to do, it was to approach the enemy in silence so deep that they would never know whom they had faced.

"Count on it."


	4. Flee The Illusory Blade

**The Stolen Soul**

**Flee The Illusory Blade**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, or anything related to it.**

**Authors Note: Well, I hope I got this chapter right. I feel like this is going to be one of the most important chapters in this thing. Guess I don't really have much to say here, other than I hope you enjoy, and please review! No seriously, reviews are awesome.**

* * *

The following morning, having learned the exact location of Aizen's residence from Kukaku, Yoruichi and Masaki set out from the Shiba house.

The hours of travel passed slowly for Masaki. That was fine though. She wanted, no, needed the time to prepare herself for what would come next. Although he had only been kidnapped recently, it felt as if an eternity had passed since that terrible night when Aizen had taken her son away.

She had felt every second of that time, like knives piercing into her soul and gouging her heart. It had nearly driven her to madness. Now it would soon be over. One way or another she would soon be able to hold her baby again.

Despite everything she had heard of Aizen from Yoruichi and the others, Masaki almost hoped that he did catch them. She wanted to see the man who was responsible for all of this. No, that wasn't quite right. She didn't want to meet him, she wanted to tear him apart with her bear hands. She wanted him to die screaming.

She forced such thoughts from her mind. Revenge wasn't the goal here. First and foremost she needed to make sure that Ichigo was safe, and return him home. After that though, who could say? Maybe she would arrange a meeting with Aizen then. Not alone of course. She would be sure to invite Kisuke and Yoruichi along as well. From what she understood, both of them owed Aizen a great deal as well.

Long hours passed by as Masaki contemplated these possibilities, and soon the sun dipped low onto the horizon. They would soon arrive on the outskirts of the Sereitei. Masaki found it fitting that their arrival was to be marked by the fall of night.

As they passed the last of the Rukongai districts, Yoruichi signalled Maskai to stop using her hirenkyaku. They had discussed this before leaving. Yoruichi had explained to Masaki that the reiatsu generated by high speed movement techniques to close to the Seireitei could draw unwanted attention from the shinigami of the Gotei 13.

As one, the two women came to a stop so suddenly that to an untrained observer it would have seemed as though they had simply materialized out of thin air.

Masaki cast a glance around the area. They were in an alley set between two rows of shops, just on the very edge of Seireitei. It sruck her that the buildings here appeared to be of a much higher quality than anywhere else she had been in the Soul Society. She suppoed that wasn't a surprise. This was the heart of the Soul Society after all. The place from which the Gotei 13 based all of their operations, and the Central 46 governed from their lofty seats of power.

Yoruichi signalled for silence before glancing out at the street. After a moment she let the breath she'd been holding.

"Alright, looks like nobody has noticed our arrival."

Masaki nodded. That had been expected. By now the moon had risen high into the night sky, and a chill wind stirred the air. She would be surprised if anyone was still out and about at this hour.

"You remember the plan?" Yoruichi asked.

"Of course." Masaki replied. How could she not? They had only gone over the plan about a thousand times before setting out. It was burned so deeply into her brain that even if she lived for a thousand years and witnessed countless amazing events, Masaki doubted anything would ever be able to drive this plan from her mind.

"Repeat it back to me." Yoruichi insisted. Seeing Masaki's annoyed look she added "We can't be to careful. I just want to make sure that we aren't going to make any mistakes on this."

"Fine." Masaki grimaced as she went over the details one more time. "We'll approach the house from different directions in order to assess the situation. We will use the mirrors Kukaku gave us to reflect moonligt to signal if its safe to proceed or not, and then infiltrate the house. While I retrieve Ichigo, you will eliminate Aizen's housekeeper so he doesn't raise the alarm. After all that we get out and run like hell. There, happy?"

"Its a bit hard to be happy during a situation like this." Yoruichi shrugged. "But I'm satisfied. Lets get moving."

Slowly but surely the two women made their way closer to Aizen's residence, moving from alley to alley, and shadow to shadow. Masaki was not accustomed to trying to be sneaky, but it was easy enough for her to follow the other womans lead.

She had to be careful not to lose sight of Yoruichi however. The former leader of the Shihoin clan was clamping down on her reiatsu so tightly that Masaki could barely detect it at all despite how close they were.

Soon they passed into the wooded area where they knew their target waited. Using a few quick hand signals, Yoruichi told Masaki that it was time to split up. Nodding, Masaki turned and moved away from Yoruichi.

She tried to keep her nervousness at bay as she circled around towards the other side of Aizen's residence, but it wasn't easy. It was very quiet this night. The only sound that reached Masaki's ears was the whisper of the wind in the trees, and her own furiously pounding heart.

She was strongly tempted to start casting glances behind her, just to make sure nobody was sneaking up on her. She tried her best to resist the temptation. It wouldn't do any good for her to start getting paranoid over every shadow.

Masaki froze in place when off in the distance she heard a twig snap. She held her breath and listened as intently as she had ever listened for anything, but no further noises disturbed the night.

She stared in the direction the sound had come from, thinking maybe her eyes would find what her ears had not. It was a pointless effort however. Here in this wooded area there wasn't even moonlight to illuminate the darkness. Only shadows layered upon shadows, filling the spaces between the trees, and making Masaki feel as if all the world had been snuffed out around her.

For just a moment, Masaki contemplated whether or not she should summon her quincy bow and fire a Heilig Pfeil in order to momentarily banish the darkness. She decided against it almost immediately. If there was a threat out there, firing off an arrow like that would only reveal her location, possibly without providing her with any useful information in return. A mistake like that could easily get her killed.

After a minute had passed, and no other sounds had reached her, Masaki started to move again. Perhaps it had just been a wild animal that had broken the twig in the distance, or maybe it had been something more sinister. Or perhaps it had been only in her mind. Whatever the case may have been, there wasn't any point in just sitting around. Either it was a threat or it wasn't, and there wasn't anything Masaki could do about it either way.

It was slow going, Yoruichi had insisted that she move as quietly as possible, but eventually she reached the edge of the woods, and found herself staring out into a clearing. In the center of that clearing she could see the back of a modest looking house.

Aizen's house, Masaki presumed. She surpressed a shiver. The place gave her the creeps. The whole house was draped in the shadows cast by the moonlight, as if it wore a cloak of pure darkness.

She pushed aside her fear. Her little Ichigo was in that house. She was sure of it, and if Ichigo was inside that house, then that was where Masaki needed to go. Pushing down the urge to rush into the house then and there was one of the hardest things Masaki had ever done. But Yoruichi had made a plan for them to follow, and Masaki trusted the older womans judgement.

She reached out with her senses, trying to feel for any reiatsu in or around the house, while also scanning the area with her eyes. She didn't see anything to arouse suspicioun, and the only reiatsu she detected was very low. Most likely that was the caretaker Aizen had hired to watch over Ichigo while he was away.

After a few more moments observation revealed no new information, she retrieved the hand mirror Kukaku had given her from her pocket. She used the mirror to reflect moonlight towards the general area Yoruichi was supposed to be. Sure enough, after a moment, Masaki saw the return signal. Good. That meant Yoruichi hadn't seen anything either, which meant they could finally go in and rescue Ichigo.

Confident that her actions were being mirrored by Yoruichi, Masaki crept away from the treeline. It only took a moment to reach the backwall of the house. Still doing her best not to generate any sound, she skirted the edge of the house, circling around towards the front in order to rendevouz with Yoruichi.

She froze for a moment. What if Yoruichi wasn't there? The sound of the twig snapping came back to her. What if whatever, or whoever had made that sound had managed to sneak up on Yoruichi and cut her down? It wouldn't take a genius to find the hand mirror on her person and guess its purpose. What if it was Aizen instead of Yoruichi who was waiting for her at the front of the house?

What if Masaki was now all alone with the enemy?

Her heart raced, and her breathing quickened. She couldn't move. She needed to move right now. But what if? She felt cold sweat running down her forehead and down her neck.

No, she thought, she needed to stop this. She told herself that she was just letting her fear get the best of her, that she was just being paranoid. She was going to go around that corner, and Yoruichi would be there, just as planned.

Slowly, Masaki began to move again, creeping forward inch by inch, dreading what she might find around the corner. Then there were no more steps to take, and no more inches to creep through. Just the corner. Steeling herself, she leaned forward and peeked around the corner.

The relief she felt upon seeing Yoruichi crouching by the door went beyond anything that Masaki could have described.

"What kept you?" Yoruichi's whisper was so quiet that Masaki almost didn't hear it.

"It was nothing. I just hesitated." Masaki said, lowering her voice to match Yoruichi's volume.

The other woman frowned, but chose not to comment further. Masaki was grateful for that. In truth, she felt rather foolish for letting her emotions get the better of her like that.

Moving in absolute silence, Yoruichi slid open the door and moved into the house. Masaki waited just a second before following. Inside she could see a balding middle-aged man sitting at a table, reading from a tattered looking book. A candle in resting on the center of the table was the only source of light in the room.

Perhaps feeling a draft, the man glanced up from his book and looked towards the door. In an instant Yoruichi was on him. It wasn't much of a struggle. The poor man had just enough time to look startled before Yoruichi took hold of his head and twisted. A sickening crack echoed through the room. Carefully, and quietly, Yoruichi lowered the still twitching body to the floor.

Masaki managed not to wince throughout the process. She had known this was coming after all. They couldn't afford the possibility that this man might sound the alarm. Or the risk that he would see them and report them to Aizen. If that happened, then Aizen would only come after Ichigo again, and this whole thing would have been for nothing.

"We should be clear for now." Yoruichi said, although she didn't raise her voice any.

Maskai didn't bother to respond. Now that she was in the house, she could feel another reiatsu. Small, almost nonexistant, but so very similar to Isshin's that Masaki knew there was only one person it could belong to. She was sensing her son.

She ignored Yoruichi's warning to wait as she dashed down the hall towards the source of that reiatsu. She had done enough waiting. She just wanted to hold her son in her arms, to know that he was alright. That was all that mattered.

She tore open the door to the last room in the hall and rushed in, and there he was. Ichigo was there safe and sound in a cradle, gazing back at her through the darkness with his brown eyes.

Not even trying to fight back her tears, Maskai moved across the room and scooped Ichigo out of the cradle. The baby made a soft sound of curiosity as he gazed up at his mothers face. Masaki felt her heart melt as she gazed down on her son for the first time since she had given birth to him.

She could have stood there forever, just quietly crying tears of joy while Ichigo rested quietly in her arms. That would have been a fine way to spend eternity. But she knew they were still in danger. She couldn't afford to stop yet. Not until Ichigo was back in his rightful home at the Kurosaki clinic, with her and Isshin.

Yoruichi was waiting for her when she returned to the main room. The older woman smiled when she saw the baby nestled in Masaki's arms.

"Thank goodness he's safe."

Masaki didn't respond with words. She didn't trust herself to speak right at this moment. Instead she met the other womans eyes. The look in her own eyes conveyed what she wanted to say well enough. It was time to go home.

The wave of reiatsu crashed down on Masaki with such sudden force that it was a miracle that she didn't drop her son. Across from her, Yoruichi's eyes widened, and the older woman let out a curse like Masaki had never heard.

The reiatsu was powerful in a way Masaki had only ever felt from one other person. Unlike Isshin's power however, this reiatsu felt like it was slithering all about her. It felt as if a thousand snakes were slithering across her body. It was all she could do not to scream.

A glance at her son showed that the boy was trying to cry out, but he couldn't. He was being suffocated by the sheer intensity of the power that was washing over them. Figuring that their cover had already been blown, Masaki let out her own reiatsu to shield Ichigo.

Having regained the ability to breathe, Ichigo let out a string of wails that tugged at Masaki's heart, and filled her with rage towards whoever was doing this.

Suddenly the far wall exploded inwards, and Masaki saw a flash of silver racing towards her face. Moving with all the speed she could muster, Masaki threw herself to the side, just barely avoiding whatever it was that had just tried to hit her. Actually, she thought, what had she just dodged?

As she looked at it, she realized that what she was seeing was a sword. One that had extended its length from somewhere outside the house, and was still extending now. Behind her she heard the blade punch through the walls of the house.

Eyes wide in alarm, Yoruichi ducked down low. "Get down!"

Masaki barely reacted to the warning in time. The blade slashed out to the side, cutting through walls and supports like a warm knife through butter. Masaki could hear the entire house groan as it began to collapse in on itself.

She had just seconds to act. She and Yoruichi could survive being inside a collapsing house. Ichigo could not. In the end that made her course of action obvious.

Holding onto Ichigo with just one arm, Masaki formed a minature version of her quincy bow on her left hand, and took aim at the wall. One arrow blasted a large enough hole to escape through, but it would only be there for a second or two.

There was no time to second guess this, and no time to make sure Yoruichi was following her. There was just time to go. A burst of hirenkyaku carried her and Ichigo out through the hole she had made, and back into the cool night air.

No sooner had her feet touched the ground than she caught another flash of silver in her peripheral vision. She jerked her head to the side in a desperate attempt to evade the extending blade. A stinging pain on her cheek told her that she had only been partially succesful.

Acting almost entirely on instinct, Masaki aimed her left hand back along the length of the blade, and loosed a quick volley of arrows. The enemy vanished in a flicker of shunpo an instant before he would have been struck, but not before Masaki got a good look at him. Silver hair, eyes squinted almost shut, mouth stretched into a smile that reminded Masaki of a fox. He had been dressed not only in the traditional Shihakusho worn by all shinigami, but also in a sleeveless captains haori.

This must be Gin Ichimaru. Yoruichi had told her all about him. One of Aizen's lackeys, as well as the Captain of the third division.

"That was awful impressive of ya." The voice came from directly behind Masaki.

Eyes wide, the quincy woman whirled around to face her foe, left hand raised to fire another shot. She hoped to shoot him in the head. At this close range she couldn't possible miss. It was only when she completed her spin and saw that Gin's zanpakuto was already aimed directly between her eyes that it occurred to her that that worked both ways.

"Bye bye." Gin said.

Masaki snapped her eyes shut as the blade began to extend. She knew there was no way she could dodge it, and she decided she didn't want to see it coming. She wanted to weep at her inability to save Ichigo, and she felt despair at the thought that all of this had been for nothing.

She felt a sharp pain between her eyes, and then a blood running down her nose. But that was where it stopped. There was no sensation of breaking bone, nor was there the sudden loss of coniousness one might expect to experience after being stabbed in the head. Had she died? Slowly, she opened her eyes.

She saw Gin with a startled look on his face, and his blade, which had reached her forehead. She also saw the hand that had grabbed that blade near the tip, halting its progress.

With a sharp kick, Yoruichi sent Gin flying across the clearing, and away from Masaki.

"Sorry I shaved that so close." Yoruichi said apologetically, although she didn't take her eyes off Gin as she spoke. That was probably for the best, since the third division captain was getting back on his feet.

"Don't worry about it." Masaki gasped. She couldn't quite seem to get her breathing under control, and her heart was going out of control as well. That had been the closest she'd ever been to dying. If Yoruichi had been even one second later, Maskai knew she would have died. It was an odd feeling to realize just how close she had come.

"Don't get distracted." Yoruichi said quielty. Stay here and keep your guard up, I'll handle this."

"Ok." Masaki nodded. She wanted to help, but Yoruichi was much better suited to this kind of thing than Masaki was. Besides, Masaki had to watch after the infant she was holding.

Yoruichi sprang across the clearing with cat like grace, her leg cutting a smooth arc through the air as she aimed a kick at Gin's head. Gin ducked under the blow, allowng Yoruichi's momentum to carry her past him. He whirled about and swept his blade, now at a more normal length, in a slash meant to decapitate Yoruichi.

The other woman moved out of the way so fast that Masaki barely caught the movement at all. The Shihoin woman lunged in at Gin fast and hard, driving him onto the defensive with a whirlwind of punches and kicks.

Masaki was mesmerised by the onslaught her companion was unleashing on their enemy. She couldn't even make out Yoruichi's individual movements anymore. Gin seemed to be having a hard time keeing up as well. He hadn't taken a major hit yet, but with each second he seemed to be thrown just a little further off balance, and just a little closer to defeat.

Masaki was starting to think that maybe they would be able to defeat Gin quickly, and leave without drawing any more attention to themselves. She supposed that she should have known better.

"My, they certainly are energetic aren't they?"

A gasp tore itself from Maskai's throat as her head whipped around, eyes searching for the source of the voice, but finding nothing but empty air.

"Ah, my apologies." The voice spoke again. The air in front of Masaki rippled, and then the very fabric of reality seemed to peel back. Bright colors flowed out from within the tear, illuminating the silhouette of a man.

Moving with the air of a man who was simply enjoying a pleasant evening stroll, the man stepped out of the tear in reality, which seemed to close itself behind him.

Now Masaki could see him. He had brown curly hair, and peered at her from behind his glasses with soulless brown eyes. He was dressed much like Gin, although this mans haori had sleeves that covered his arms entirely.

"Please don't be alarmed by my entrance." The man said, his voice carrying a reassuring tone. "It wasn't my intention to startle you. Its just so much easier to observe interesting people and events when my presence is cloaked behind a concealing kido."

While the man spoke, Masaki was struggling to make her body move. But her limbs had frozen, and she could feel the grip of panic threatening to grab hold of her senses and throw her into hysteria.

She knew who this man was. Just as surely as she had remembered Yoruichi's description of Gin Ichimaru, she also remembered the other womans description of Sosuke Aizen.

Aizen gazed at his collapsed house. "I do wish Gin would be more careful. Replacing something like a house is such a hassle."

Masaki didn't have any idea how to respond to that. Was this guy trying to make small talk with her? She couldn't imagine what purpose that would serve.

Her breath caught in her throat at Aizen's next words. "It truly would have been a shame if my son had been injured due to poor judgement."

"Your son?" Fury welled up inside of Masaki. How dare this man, this monster call Ichigo his son. Her left hand snapped up in an instant, her bow reforming before she finished aiming. Aizen simply smiled pleasantly at her. She fired an arrow. Much like her earlier situation with Gin, she was confident that she couldn't possibly miss at such close range.

Except that somehow she did. Aizen's head tilted to te side ever so slightly, just enough for the arrow to miss him completely and hurl into the woods behind him instead.

"How violent of you. There is no need for such hostility. I simply wish to retrieve what you attmepting to take from me." Aizen extended one hand. "Please hand my son over."

Masaki felt such an anger that was as if all her blood had been replaced with liquid hate. She wanted to kill this man. No, she needed to kill him. Right here, right now. She reached into the surrounding atmosphere with her reiatsu and drew in the surrounding reishi, intending to crush Sosuke Aizen beneath the most powerful attack she could manage.

In the last instant before she fired, somebody grabbed her from behind, and the trees and grass, and even the night sky above turned into a blur. Suddenly she was at the opposite side of the clearing from Aizen, with Yoruichi standing protectively over her.

Back across the clearing, Aizen watched them with mild curiosity. Gin walked over and joined his master, looking a little worse for wear than he had earlier.

"Yoruichi-" Masaki began, but the other woman cut her off.

"You need to run, now!" Yoruichi's voice left no room for argument. This was no longer Masaki's friend talking, but instead the proud woman who had once led the Shihoin clan, and commanded the Onmitsukido. This was now the woman was used to having her orders followed immediately, and witout question.

When Masaki did not rush away immediately, Yoruichi looked at her with a scowl on her face. "What are you waiting for? Don't you want to get Ichigo out of here!?"

Of course, Masaki thought, of course she wanted to get Ichigo away from this place. For a moment she had forgotten that in her anger, but Yoruichi's words had brought reality back to her. Nothing was more important right now than simply escaping with her son. Revenge could always come later.

Masaki turned away from Yoruichi, and propelled herself away with hirenkyaku. As the surroundings whipped by in a blur, and as she shot out back towards the farthest reaches of the Rukongai, she prayed that she hadn't just abandoned Yoruichi to her death.

* * *

Yoruichi did not allow any fear to enter her mind. She had no use for such a thing in this situation. She had to be calm. She had to be in absolute control of her mind and body if she was going to pull this off. It wouldn't be easy. In fact, it might not even be possible. But she had known going into this that death was a possibility. She would prefer to avoid it if at all possible, but if she did die she would do so with the pride that came from knowing that her sacrifice had allowed her companion to escape.

"Well well." Aizen said, his calm voice dripping with arrogance. "Its been a long time since I've seen your face, Yoruichi Shihoin. Are you well?"

"She certainly seems well enough to me." Gin muttered, quiet enough that Yoruichi had to read his lips to understand him.

"Indeed." Aizen said. "Would you be so kind as to stand aside. I'm afraid that your accomplice seems to be getting away with my son. I've only recently adopted, it would be a shame to lose him so soon"

Yoruichi wanted to vomit. "Save your words Aizen." She kept her voice calm and level. She couldn't afford to let Aizen see her anger the way Masaki had. This man was a master of provocation. If he saw her anger, he would use it as a tool to manipulate her actions. Under no circumstances could she allow that to happen.

"I see. How unfortunate." Aizen glanced at Gin. "If you would."

"If thats what ya want." Gin raised his zanpakuto. Once more the blade extended with terrifying speed, its tip seeking Yoruichi's heart. Yoruichi sidestepped the attack with a practiced ease before launching herself at Gin.

She knew she couldn't afford to hold anything back this time. With a snarl, she sent waves of kido into her back and shoulders. The back of her shirt was blown away by the explosive energy of the technique, even as the kido energy swirled down her arms and legs. This was her secreat weapon, a technique that she had invented. It was called Shunko. It was a technique that allowed her to combine kido and hakuda together to create a far more powerful fighting style than either of them could manage seperately.

The sudden release of energy combined with a shunpo allowed Yorichi to cross the distance between her and Gin so fast that it could almost have been considered teleportation. She felt a flash a feral satisfaction as he fist crashed into Gin's torso with the force of a meteor strike. She felt ribs shatter under the force of the blow, and Gin's eyes shot wide open with pain.

A swift roundhouse kick was sufficient to launch the treacherous shinigami away from her, and into the trees surrounding the clearing where Aizen's house had stood only minutes earlier.

Yoruichi didn't dare allow her momentum to falter. She sprang for Aizen, leg raised high above her head, intending to smash his skull open with an ax kick. Aizen jumped away at the last second, and Yoruichi's kick smashed nothing more than dirt and grass.

She quickly turned to face Aizen as he landed, about twenty paces away. She had been able to follow that movement easily, but she knew Aizen could move a hell of a lot faster than that if he felt like it. She hoped he wouldn't feel like it for a while. She needed to buy more time.

"Very impressive." Aizen said as he brought his hands together in mocking applause. "I don't believe I've ever seen that technique before."

"Thats because I've never shown it to anyone before." Yoruichi replied.

"I see." Aizen's smile widened. "I'm honored."

Rather than responding with words, Yoruichi used shunpo to close the distance between them, and aimed a punch for Aizen's throat. The fifth squad captain shifted his body to face her sideways, and brought his palm across in a deflecting block, sending her punch flying wide.

Yoruichi started to turn for a follow up attack, but flashed backwards instead, just in time to avoid being cut in half by Aizen's drawing slash.

"You're reflexes are quite good." Aizen complimented.

"Thank you." Yoruichi replied cooly.

"It is I who should thank you." Aizen said.

Yoruichi frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"For clearing my path." Aizen explained.

Yoruichi's eyes widened as she realized her mistake. After that last exchange she was no longer blocking the direction Masaki had fled in.

Aizen turned from her and began walking towards the treeline.

'Wait!" Yoruichi launched herself at Aizen's unguarded back. Maybe she would get lucky and land a fatal blow before he turned back around to deal with her attack.

Then there was a flash of silver in her peripheral vision, and she had to dig her heels into the ground to slow down. Gin's blade flashed by barely an inch in front of her face.

She glanced over to see the third division captain standing just inside the tree line, a trickle of blood running from his mouth.

"Gin, I leave this to you." With those words Aizen shot off in a flash of shunpo.

"Well, you heard him." Gin wheezed. "Guess I ain't allowed to let ya follow after Captain Aizen."

Yoruichi ignored him. She wasn't going to be stopped by him. There was no way Gin could keep up with her in his condition. All she had to do was move fast enough to catch Aizen. She turned and sprang after her quary.

Behind her she heard Gin's voice. "Bankai: Kami Shini no Yari!" Then there was an explosion of pain in her side, and blood sprayed the air.

* * *

Masaki raced between first trees, and then buildings, moving faster than she had ever moved before. Pushing hirenkyaku to this level was straining her to the limits of her concentration, but she dare not go any slower. She had no idea how much of a head start Yoruichi would be able to give her.

Every single inch she put behind her mattered now, every single second meant something. She changed direction over and over again. As long as she didn't go in a straight line she should be able to prevent either Aizen or Gin from following her.

She was far enough from the clearing now that it would be impossible for anybody there to detect her reiatsu, regardless of how much of it she was pouring into her hirenkyaku.

After several minutes she came to a stop in the middle of a small cluster of buildings. A quick glance around with both her eyes and spiritual senses revealed nobody around. These buildings looked like sheds and warehouses.

That was good. No people meant no witnesses who could point Aizen in the right direction. Nevertheless, she didn't feel comfortable staying in the open. It didn't take long to force her way into one of the warehouses.

Once she was inside it became immediately clear that this place hadn't been in use for a while. There were scattered empty boxes all about the place, and debris of various types littered the floor. While stacks of crates stood tall all around her, they were coated in thick layers of dust.

Masaki let out a sigh of relief as she took a seat on an upturned crate in one corner. Now that she had found this place she could take some time to calm Ichigo down, as well as check to make sure Aizen hadn't done anything to him. It would also be nice to take a little time to catch her breath after her race away from the battlefield.

It only took a few minutes before Ichigo stopped crying, and Masaki was gladdened. His cries had tugged fiercely at her heart, each one a reminder of what this child had been through in his brief existence.

A quick checkover didn't reveal anything physically wrong with Ichigo. However, she did note that there was somethig just a bit off about his reiatsu. Earlier, she had been to distracted to notice it, first by her reunion with Ichigo, and second by the confrontation with Gin and Aizen.

Dark thoughts floated through her mind. Maybe Aizen hadn't harmed Ichigo physically, but that did not mean that he hadn't harmed the boy in other, less obvious ways. Maybe he had done something to disrupt the very core of Ichigo's soul.

Masaki had to fight down a wave of panic. There was no point in dwelling on such things now. This sort of thing was Kisuke's area of expertise. If something really was wrong with Ichigo's reiatsu, then the eccentric shopkeeper would figure out what it was, and fix it.

For now what she needed to do was figure out what her next move was going to be. On the one hand she could return to Kukaku's place. There would be supplies there with which to look after Ichigo while they waited for Yoruichi. Besides that, perhaps the Shiba woman could help Masaki determine what was wrong with ichigo's reiatsu.

The downside was that doing so would risk drawing Aizen's attention to the Shiba house. Maskai truly had no desire to put the Shiba Woman in harms way, especially after she had already helped her and Yoruichi in their mission.

The second option was to head directly for the Senkaimon. The sooner she got Ichigo out of the Soul Society the better. It was a long journey however. If needed, she could breast feed ichigo along the way, but there were other concerns. What if she were attacked along the way? Without Yoruichi to guard her back Masaki would have to do all the fighting herself, which would put Ichigo at risk.

Finally Masaki decided that it would be best to head straight for the Senkaimon. She couldn't afford to waste time waiting for Yoruichi. The Shihoin woman was most likely dead now.

It pained Masaki terribly to think that. The very thought that somebody had died for her and Ichigo's sake tore at her heart. She hoped she was wrong, and that Yoruichi would catch up with her on the way home. But while Masaki could afford to hope, she could not afford to wait.

Masaki started to stand, but paused. For a second she thought she had sensed something. With a growing sense of dread, she focused on the feeling.

Her eyes went wide and her knees went weak as she felt the sensation again. It was a powerful reiatsu, just on the edge of perception. She might have brushed it off as just being a random shinigami patrolling the area, except for one thing. The owner of this reiatsu was heading right for her.

There was only one person it could be. But how could Aizen have followed her? She had been so careful not to leave a trail for him to follow. It didn't matter. What did matter was that he was coming for her.

Fear driving her to move faster than ever before, Masaki ran outside, intending to launch herself back into the high speed movement of hirenkyaku. It didn't matter what direction she moved in, just as long as she got the hell out of there.

But it was to late. Aizen suddenly flickered out of shunpo not twenty paces from where she stood. His sword was held loosely in his right hand, and a serene smile spread across his face.

"Hello again." He greeted politely. "I hope I haven't kept you waiting. I came as quickly as I could."

Struggling to hold onto her composure, Masaki asked "How? How did you find me?"

"How?' Aizen echoed, a look of mild surprise on his face. "Isn't it obvious? Surely you've noticed something different about Ichigo's reiatsu by now."

Masaki's eyes shot down to her son as realisation dawned. Aizen hadn't been tracking her. He had been tracking Ichigo. She cursed herself for not realizing it as soon as she felt something off about Ichigo's reiatsu.

"Its quite simple really." Aizen was saying. "Just a simple kido spell that I came up with. It will allow me to track Ichigo no matter how far, or how fast you run."

This was bad. Masaki didn't dare try to fight Aizen on her own. Especially not when she had Ichigo with her. Unfortunately, she wasn't sure that she had any other options. It was to late to try and hide, and Aizen would easily catch her if she tried to run.

"Now that you understand your situation, you know that there is nothing more you can do. Now please, return my son to me." Aizen's mouth twisted into a mocking smile with those last words.

Rage poured through Masaki. "If you want him so bad, then just you try and take him!"

Aizen seemed amused by her challenge. "If you insist."

Aizen closed the distance between them before Maskai could so much as blink. Maskai let go of Ichigo with her left arm and raised the limb up into the path of Aizen's blade. In the instant before steel and flesh met, Masaki poured all of the power she could into her Blut Vene ability, a quincy technique meant to greatly enhance the users durabilitiy.

Fiery pain shot through Masaki's arm, and she felt the bone break as she was flung backwards into the exterior wall of the warehouse she had been hiding in earlier. A spray of blood in the air told her that Aizen's sword had cut her flesh as well as breaking her bone.

She reached a new level of fear in that instant. Her Blut Vene had done nothing against Aizen's attack. What the hell was she supposed to do now?

Before Masaki could recover from the first attack, Aizen flashed next to her. Eyes wide with horror, Masaki could only watch as Aizen reached out with his left arm, and scooped a wailing Ichigo up and out of her embrace.

'Stop!" She screamed, lunging for Aizen's throat, but he had already used another flicker of shunpo to move himself beyond her immediate reach. Screaming with fury and rage, and her heart filled with fear, Masaki lunged after the man with all the speed she could muster.

"Snap, Tobiume!"

Masaki was so focused on Aizen that she barely even heard the newcomers voice. She had no trouble noticing the fireball that crashed into her from the side. Searing pain filled Masaki's senses as the fireball erupted all around her, engulfing her in red hot flames.

She threw herself backwards out of the blaze. She landed in a stumble, but was able to avoid falling over completely. She quickly looked back along the fireballs trajectory.

The new arrival was a young looking woman dressed in the clothes of a shinigami. She had black hair that was tied into a bun by a light blue cloth. She watched Masaki with wary brown eyes. The woman held a straight sword in her hand, with multiple prongs protruding from seemingly random intervals along the length of her blade.

"Fourth Seat Hinamori." Aizen greeted. "Thank goodness for your arrival."

Masaki blinked as she looked back at Aizen. In an instant the mans entire demeanor had changed. No longer did his face carry that infuriating mocking expression. Now he had the look of a man who had been stressed to his limits, only to be saved at the last second.

"Captain Aizen, I sensed the battle near your house and gathered as many men as I could to come and assist you!" Hinamori declared.

Sure enough, now that Masaki was looking for them, several other shinigami were arriving from behind the Fourth Seat.

That was just lovely, Masaki thought bitterly.

"Excellent work." Aizen replied breathlessly. "Thank you, Momo."

The Fourth Seat almost seemed to blush at Aizen's use of her first name. However, she was quick to remember the present situation. She turned back towards Masaki.

"Ryoka, you are outnumbered. Surrender now, or we will have no choice but to kill you. This is to be your only warning." Hinamori's tone was absolute.

"Hold on! You don't understand whats happening here!" Maskai cried desperately. Maybe if she could make this woman understand the truth, then maybe Hinamori would help her. It was a foolish thought, Masaki knew, but it was all she had left.

"Thats my son! Aizen kidnapped him on the night of his birth!" Tears welled up in Masaki's eyes, and her voice cracked. "Please, all I want is to take my child home."

Hinamori's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You leave me no choice!"

A ball of fire formed along the edge of the Fourth Seats sword, and with a swing she sent the attack hurtling at Masaki.

Maskai used a burst of hirenkyaku to launch herself away from the blast, and onto a nearby rooftop.

"Why won't you listen to me!" Masaki's voice came out as little more than a shriek of confused anger.

"Its my Kyoka Suigetsu." Aizen said. He held his blade up for Masaki to see. "My Kyoka Suigetsu has the power of complete hypnosis. They see and hear only what I want them to. Right now all they see is a madwoman trying to steal my son, while proclaiming her hatred for all shinigami."

Masaki's face twisted into an expression of pure hate. "You bastard!"

Masaki reached into the air around her, pulling in the srounding reishi and forming it into threads. These threads then connected themselves to her left arm. This was the Quincy technique called Ransotengai. By using the threads attached to her disabled limb, Maskai would be able to manipulate it as if it were undamaged.

Masaki raised her left hand, a full size Quincy bow already forming. With her right hand she drew back the string. She took just an instant to make sure her shot was aimed directly between Aizen's eyes, and then fired. The man flickered away with shunpo, allowing the Heilig Pfiel to crash violently into a shed behind him, shattering the small structure into little more than splinters.

An instant later, that despicable man arrived next to Hinamori. "Fourth Seat Hinamori, please remove my son from this place."

Hinamori looked startled as Aizen passed Ichigo to her. "Yes Captain, of course! But what about you?"

"Don't worry." Aizen flashed Hinamori a smile that would have seemed genuinely benevolent to Masaki, if she hadn't known what sort of man he truly was.

"Understood." Hinamori sheathed her sword and took Ichigo in both arms.

Masaki didn't have a name for the emotion she felt when Hinamori flickered away with her crying son. It was as if everything inside of her had been emptied out, and been replaced with the coldest ice in all of existence. In the core of that ice was a single flame that emmited no light, but burned with an infinite heat.

Whatever that feeling might be called, it pushed all thought from her mind. There was no fear, and no hesitation. She sprang after Ichigo.

When Aizen came at her with a slash she simply side stepped. Blood flew from a newly opened gash on her right shoulder, but she didn't care. Another string of Ransotengai rendered the wound meaningless.

When the other shinigami tried to stand in her way she let her arrows fly, and steel shattered, and blood painted the air.

As she flew between the still collapsing corpses and used hirenkyaku to chase Hinamori, it occurred to her that she was screaming. She wasn't quite sure when she had started screaming.

Ahead, she could see the woman who held her son. An extra burst of hirenkyaku carried her into the air right next to the Fourth Seat. Hinamori looked back at her, eyes wide with surprise and fear. Masaki felt no pity. She raised her bow.

Then there was a searing pain in her back, and she crashed and tumbled along the ground until she finally slid to a stop. She tried to stand, but there was no feeling in her legs. She could not move them.

Aizen stood nearby, his sword dripping with blood. Masaki realized he must have cut into her spine.

"Sorry, I'm afraid its to soon for Momo to die." Aizen said.

Masaki cocked her head and watched the Fourth Seat vanish into the distance, taking her precious Ichigo farther and farther away, until she could no longer hear even the echo of her sons cries.

"Its been fun." Aizen said as he walked towards her. "But I'm afraid its over now."

Over? No, this wasn't over. Strings of reishi reached down along Masaki's body, attaching themselves all along her legs. A severed spine meant nothing. Masaki rose to her feet, her bow already reforming in her hand.

Aizen was saying something, but his words no longer reached Masaki's ears. That was because his words were also meaningless.

Masaki's arrows flew in a lethal spray, only to shatter harmlessly against a swiftly erected kido barrier. It didn't matter to Masaki. Kido barriers were just as meaningless as words.

With a burst of hirenkyaku she moved behind Aizen, where there was no barrier to shield him. Before she could fire another volley, Aizen came at her, sword descending towards her face. Pouring her power into Blut Vene, Masaki reached out to stop the blade with her right hand. She felt a flash of intense pain in her hand, and watched as half of her right hand flew away amidst more blood. This too was meaningless.

Her left hand lashed out, raking her nails across Aizen's face as if they were claws. He reached up with his spare hand and seized her wrist. She lunged forward, her teeth clamping down on his arm until she tasted his blood.

There was meaning in this, she knew. There was also meaning in the startled cry of pain and anger that tore itself from Aizen's throat.

She saw him shift his sword a moment before he rammed it through her chest and into her heart. All her pain faded away, and darkness closed at the edges of her vision.

As she fell, what little power she had left formed into a small bow around her remaining hand. One last arrow flew, and Aizen's blood sprayed back across her face.

Before her vision faded entirely, she saw Aizen stumble backwards, eyes wide with alarm, with one bloody hand pressed against his side.

Then the ground came up to meet Masaki, and her vision faded away.

Now it was over.

* * *

**Authors Note: Well, I hope I got Masaki's final stand right. I must have planned out about six different versions of that sequence before settling on this one. I know some people might be upset by this one, but trust me when I say it is vital for the story that things happen this way. Anyway, if you liked that chapter please leave a review. Or, if you didn't like the chapter, and have some constructive criticism on how I can improve, then please leave a review in that case as well.**


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